Douluo Continent: Reborn as Yuhao, they all have ulterior motives.

Chapter 120: Gu Yuena was routed and abandoned her armor.

By the time Yan Shaozhe finished speaking, Elder Xuan was already in tears. He shook his head and said in a sorrowful tone.

"Shao Zhe, you don't need to try to persuade me anymore. I can accept the loss this time, but what about next time? And the time after that?"

"After this incident, I truly understand that my martial soul is not suited for these kinds of things. I already let down those inner court disciples last time, how can I face Tang San again this time? I'll personally go to Elder Mu to resign later."

However, before he could finish speaking, Yan Shaozhe interrupted him directly. Having already gained experience from the Star Dou Great Forest incident, how could he not know the most effective way to persuade Elder Xuan?

Before coming to find Elder Xuan, he had already explained the precautions to Tang San, and immediately spoke up without hesitation.

"Elder Xuan! After spending this past year together, don't you know how respectful Tang San is to his teachers? He would never blame you for this; on the contrary, he should be thanking you!"

"After all, if it weren't for you, he wouldn't have been able to kill that ten-thousand-year-old human-faced demon spider at all! Obtaining that external soul bone is all thanks to you!"

At this point, Yan Shaozhe paused, his eyes flashing with fervor, and continued speaking with a hint of excitement.

"We teachers can't always be the students' protectors. This incident is a rare experience for Tang San. Now that he has that external soul bone, Tang San's strength will probably jump to another level after he recovers."

"Compared to the gains, the child's injuries were completely within acceptable limits."

"Really?"

Upon hearing Yan Shaozhe's words of encouragement, Xuan Lao's cloudy old eyes couldn't help but light up with a glimmer of hope.

"Tang San really doesn't blame me?"

"Of course, Elder Xuan."

Yan Shaozhe smiled slightly and said in a teasing tone, "If you don't believe me, you can go and visit Tang San now. I believe that after you see that child express his gratitude in person, you won't feel so guilty anymore."

"Even a child knows this isn't a serious mistake. If you, Elder Xuan, are to become despondent because of this, Tang San will probably have to kneel down and beg you like those inner court disciples did back then."

Hearing this, Elder Xuan finally managed a smile through his mournful face. After the Star Dou Great Forest incident, his temperament had improved significantly.

Having received some guidance from Yan Shaozhe, Elder Xuan, no longer feeling depressed, subconsciously waved his hand, his tone carrying a hint of a smile.

"Since we've come this far, it would seem like I'm being too dramatic to continue down this path. Besides, Tang San needs to recuperate; I can't really let him kneel before me."

"Once he's feeling better, I'll personally go and apologize to him."

"Yes, Elder Xuan."

"...My lord?"

As dusk approached, Qiu'er, who was about to return to her room, saw the silver-haired figure coming down from the second floor and a look of astonishment appeared on her face.

"Um……"

As always, Gu Yuena simply nodded slightly with a calm expression.

"Call me by my name when we're out; there's no need to address me as 'Lord'."

After speaking, as if unaware of Qiu'er's strange and complicated gaze, Gu Yuena glanced at the empty first floor again and asked with some doubt.

"Where are the others?"

"Because they are preparing to move to a new house, they went shopping together this morning."

Qiu'er gave a dry explanation, her heart filled with even more sorrow as she noticed some subtle changes in Gu Yuena.

In less than 24 hours since last night, when she saw Gu Yuena again, she found that the other woman had changed somewhat.

Although her ethereal and beautiful appearance remained unchanged, Qiu'er, relying on her golden perception talent, still keenly sensed that Gu Yuena's brows had suddenly gained a subtle, almost imperceptible allure compared to yesterday.

"Then I'll go down first."

The ethereal voice rang out again, and as the two brushed past each other, Qiu'er suddenly smelled the cool fragrance on Gu Yuena that belonged to Huo Yuhao.

Mixed with her own delicate, orchid-like fragrance, the two scents intertwined, seemingly inseparable.

In a daze, Qiu'er belatedly looked at Gu Yuena's back and stared at her obviously unnatural walking posture, speechless for a moment.

After a long while, she finally took stiff steps and walked towards the second floor.

After being locked up for almost a day, Huo Yuhao's door was suddenly open. Looking up inside, Qiu'er stopped in her tracks when she saw the figure in the chair. After a long while, she asked hesitantly.

"Yuhao, are you alright?"

"Um?"

Huo Yuhao seemed to stiffen for a moment, then turned around with a complex, gentle smile on his face and responded softly.

"I'm fine, is there anything I can help you with, Qiu'er?"

"."

Qiu'er didn't speak, she remained silent.

As dusk fell, the setting sun slanted through the window and landed obliquely on the boy, but it couldn't hide Huo Yuhao's abnormally pale complexion. His azure eyes no longer shone like stars; they seemed to have lost all their brilliance, replaced by a lingering sense of bewilderment.

He was facing the window, gazing at the distant scenery, but his gaze seemed unfocused, his eyes so empty that it was impossible to tell what he was looking at.

As if he had been drained of everything overnight, Huo Yuhao now looks weathered and worn.

Especially when the other person turns their head to look at her, forcing a smile.

How can I describe that feeling?

It's like a goddess who was originally detached from worldly affairs, but one day suddenly fell to earth. Although she experienced countless hardships, she still faced life with optimism.

It's like a princess of a fallen kingdom who was once admired by thousands, but suddenly her country was destroyed and her family perished. Even though her status plummeted and she could only flee every day, she still greeted everyone with a smile.

Or perhaps it's a newlywed wife who, while her husband is at work, has her home invaded by a perverted neighbor who does whatever he wants, and then has to pretend nothing happened and smile as she prepares dinner when her husband returns.

The more she thought about it, the more exciting it became. Qiu'er couldn't help but swallow slightly. After finally managing to pull herself away from those perverse thoughts, she coughed twice and casually changed the subject.

"Are you hungry? Your aunt and the others went out and don't know when they'll be back. They told us to eat by ourselves before they left."

"Okay, I'll come down and cook in a bit."

"Um"

Qiu'er nodded slightly, then seemed to remember something and asked hesitantly with her head down.

"Um, are you free tonight?"

"."

Huo Yuhao's lips twitched slightly. Recalling the fierce battle that had lasted since last night, a battle that had even eroded the Great Dao, he finally nodded slightly.

Some things are simply a matter of either zero times or countless times.

Since opening the door to a new world last night and thoroughly testing the effects of lust, Huo Yuhao, having tasted its sweetness, has begun to experience some minor changes in his mentality.

Huo Yuhao has also basically figured out the specific effects of the source of lust.

First, there's the effect that Gu Yuena felt last night—that he suddenly became more attractive. This is actually the result of the body being passively modified after the source of lust was unlocked.

This is the second original sin source, after the source of arrogance, to completely modify Huo Yuhao.

Compared to the "breaking limits" brought about by the source of arrogance, the transformation effect of the source of lust is more accurately described as "affinity for all things".

Simply put, under the transformation of his lustful nature, Huo Yuhao gained an added advantage in terms of affability, making it easier for him to win the favor of others.

If we consider the favorability of a stranger meeting him for the first time as zero, then Huo Yuhao, after his lustful nature was modified, would be around twenty.

Although it may not sound like a huge improvement, having this effect can definitely make gathering information or negotiating with others much more efficient.

Moreover, this effect doesn't seem to be static. Judging from Gu Yuena's feelings last night, as she becomes more familiar with Huo Yuhao, the effect of this affinity will become stronger. She'll have to compare it with a stranger to know for sure.

But that's not the most important thing. The key point is that Huo Yuhao calls this ability "Affinity for All Things" because it's not only effective on humans.

Animals, plants, and even the primordial energy of heaven and earth, as well as the elemental particles that fill the air, will all be affected.

The most obvious result is that after being transformed by the source of lust, Huo Yuhao's cultivation speed increased by about 30% compared to before the transformation.

At present, he is only at the Soul Venerable level, so it may not be very obvious yet. But when he reaches the Soul Emperor and Soul Saint stages, this extra 30%, combined with the Gluttony Origin and Huo Yuhao's own experience, will be a qualitative leap compared to others.

In addition to this, the source of lust also endowed Huo Yuhao with another ability—sensory amplification.

Just as Ma Xiaotao's body became extremely sensitive after her evil fire erupted, Huo Yuhao could directly bestow this effect upon others.

To be fair, this ability is extremely useful in various scenarios, especially during combat. Even the slightest pain will be amplified several times, causing attacks that could originally be withstood to become unbearably painful under the enhancement of this ability, or even directly causing the loss of combat ability.

However, it still has some limitations similar to other original sins, namely, it is less effective against beings with higher cultivation levels, but if powerful beings do not deliberately suppress or resist it through their cultivation, the effect will not be affected.

Last night, during his fierce battle with Gu Yuena, Huo Yuhao used this ability for the first time. As for the effect...

Recalling how Gu Yuena, whose cultivation was so much higher than his, was ultimately slaughtered and left in disarray, Huo Yuhao couldn't help but swallow hard.

Looking at Qiu'er before him, he couldn't help but blink his azure eyes, remaining silent.

(End of this chapter)